(a) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a protective device for use in connection with tools used for cleaning floors. More particularly, it relates to a shield or cover for wet mops that are commonly used for cleaning floors in commercial buildings, schools, and homes, and to the mop upon which the shield is mounted. The shield is mounted on the mop handle, and its position is adjustable up or down on the handle depending on whether or not the mop is in use.
In many commercial buildings, schools and the like that have hard surface floors such as concrete, stone, tile, vinyl or similar, the floors are conventionally cleaned with what is termed a wet mop. A wet mop comprises an elongated shaft or handle with a water absorbable mop head attached to the lower end of the handle. The water absorbable head generally comprises a plurality of cotton ropes of various dimensions tied together at the top, so as to form a single unit. The mop head can also be formed of water absorbable cloths, if desired.
In the mopping operation, water, which may or may not contain a detergent, is spread on the floor through various means, and the floor is swabbed with the mop. The mop head cleans the floor and absorbs the water which contains dissolved dirt and other contaminants. The dirty water is then wrung out of the mop head, and the process repeated until an entire floor is cleaned.
It is often desirable to use different mops for different sections of a building. That is, it is desirable to use one specific mop for bathrooms whose floors are frequently contaminated with urine, and another for less contaminated areas of a building such as hallways, etc. The mops are frequently carried from place to place, and so it is desirable to protect the clothes and skin of the person carrying the mop from coming into contact with, and being contaminated by the wet mop head. It is also desirable to be able to mark the mops in a manner that enables one to identify which mop is designed for specific areas.
This invention is concerned with a mop upon which is mounted a device for protection of a wet mop head, and for identification of mops designated for specific uses.
(b) Description of Related Art
U.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/0016031, Lianes, published Jan. 26, 2006, describes a cylinder attachment slideably mounted on a mop handle to wring water out of a mop. The cylinder has an array of apertures in its lower wider portion for release of the mop water when the dirty water-laden mop head is compressed inside it.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,846,862, Botting, issued Nov. 12, 1974, describes and claims a sheath for a curling broom designed to receive and to support the cornstalk brush of a curling broom to improve the effectiveness and life thereof. U.S. Pat. No. 1,476,396, Dickson, issued Dec. 4, 1923, describes and claims a sanitary broom mop. In this invention a broom is covered with a soft material that serves as a mop for wiping floors, walls, and the like.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,364,512, Yamashita, issued Jan. 23, 1968, describes and claims a mop squeezing cover which is slidable on the mop handle. When the squeezer is slid on the handle over the mop head, the squeezer wrings the water out of it, enabling the mop head to be reused. None of the above described patents disclose or make obvious the device of the present invention.